80-year-old fulfils education dream

- Das completes ma course

Kripasindhu Das at his residence in Dibrugarh. Picture by UB Photos

Kripasindhu Das from Dibrugarh district has become the oldest person in Assam to acquire an MA degree.

Eighty-year-old Das completed his masters degree in political science from the Institute of Distance and Open Learning (IDOL) under Gauhati University, whose results were declared on Friday evening. Das had chosen MDK Girls College in Dibrugarh as his study and examination centre.

Born in 1934 at Sunamganj in Sylhet district, Das lost his mother in his childhood. He had completed his matriculation from East Bengal Secondary Education Board in Dhaka.

After completing his schooling in Bangladesh, he migrated to Assam after Partition in search of a job and shelter.

He found an assistant’s job at the Margherita tea estate and brought his father to live with him. After completing his Intermediate at Karimganj College, he was unable to pursue further studies because of financial constraints.

But Das had always cherished the dream of becoming a post-graduate degree holder and finally managed to fulfil his dream this year.

During his job, he pursued graduation from Digboi College under Dibrugarh University and later joined Jalan estate. He worked at the estate for around four decades.

The octogenarian said he could not pursue masters because of his busy work schedule. But as soon as he retired in December 2010, he took admission at IDOL. Father to a son and two daughters, Das’s grandson was a Class III student at Salt Brooke Academy in Dibrugarh, when he took admission.

The vice-chancellor of the institute, Kandarpa Das, said it was very inspiring news not only for the IDOL fraternity but also for the education scenario of the state. “Kripasindhu has finally fulfilled his long-cherished dream. We salute this lifelong learner,” Das said. He added that Das proved that age is no bar for education.

A few years ago, 72-year-old Sarojini Bhagabati had passed MA in political science from the institute. Bhagabati, a resident of western Assam’s Nalbari, scored 46 per cent in political science and stood 60th among 305 students who appeared in the exam.